Dozens of faithful gathered to celebrate the Rite of the Neocatechumenal Way

Friday, May. 01, 2015

SALT LAKE CITY — More than 50 parishioners from Sacred Heart and Our Lady of Guadalupe parishes who are participating in the Neocatechumenal Way gathered April 23 at our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church to celebrate the Celebration of the Word in which they were presented with their Bibles by Archbishop John Wester, administrator of the Diocese of Salt Lake City.

The celebration began with a procession song, and an invocation to the Holy Spirit: “O my Lord, send your Spirit to renew the face of the earth.” The Celebration of the Word involved four readings, one each from the historical books, the prophets, the epistles and the Gospel.

The first three readings were introduced and proclaimed in turn, followed by a song. The Gospel was introduced by Johnnie Villalba, a seminarian of the Archdiocese of New Jersey.

After the Gospel, Pablo Gomis, a seminarian from the Archdiocese of Boston, invited the attendees to respond to the Word of God in view of their own experience.

Both seminarians are part of the Neocatechumenal Way itinerant team that works in Utah. 

Gomis asked those present how the Gospel reading resonated in them As they raised their hands to share their “echoes,” as the experience is called, one by one the parishioners shared their feelings and their own experiences.

Maria del Socorro, a Sacred Heart parishioner said that her echo was a message of the love of God. “The Word of God is telling me how much He loves me and how much I should love Him and to never forget about Him,” she said.

“We have to love each other and we have to fall in love with God every day more and more,” said Altagracia Suarez, an Our Lady of Guadalupe parishioner.

Mireya Jimenez from Sacred Heart Parish said that her echo reminded her to never forget about love.

 “I should never forget His eternal love… I heard that He is hungry for me as I am hungry for Him,” Jimenez said.

Father Jose Fidel Barrera, pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe, began his homily after the reflections were completed. 

Following the homily, everyone was invited to form a line and approached Archbishop Wester, kneeling in front of him to receive his or her Bible. As he presented each one with the book, the archbishop said, “Receive the promises made to your forefathers … Receive them fulfilled in our Lord Jesus. …  May this Word accepted by you remain for life. …”

Some kissed their Bibles, other shook the archbishop’s hand and kissed it.

After the rite was concluded, everyone was invited to stand for spontaneous prayers of the faithful. A final blessing was given and the final song was sung, then the parishioners were invited to a weekend away, called a “convivence.” 

Further catechesis on certain aspects of faith will be provided at the convivence to prepare those in attendance for what is in store for them. 

“This will be in order to experience the tripod – Word, Liturgy, Community – on which Christian life is based,” said Gomis; after the weekend the parishioners will be asked if they would like to form part of a small Neocatechumenate community.

“If they accept, a formal community of no more than 30 people will be created,” said Gomis.